Wedges and Levers and Strings Oh My! -OR- To Be A Fly On The Wall...

THUD! Ah, there's that other other shoe. Is it a sensible conservative black wingtip? A Jackboot? or just a red velvet slipper type of thing?

Chicago's Francis Cardinal George, speaking for his archdiocese's millions of Roman Catholics, taken at his word, considers "Gay Activism" to be comparable to the KKK?
"You don’t want the Gay Liberation Movement to morph into something like the Ku Klux Klan, demonstrating in the streets against Catholicism," the Cardinal said.
Removed of the irony of robes and pointy headwear, Cardinal George has exposed his undeniable Chicago roots, intolerance, sensibilities and upbringing. In a vast metropolis whose areas and neighborhoods are still deeply identified by in which parish/church its residents reside, turf battles are nothing new.

The Chicago Gay Pride 2012 parade controversies have ramped up several notches. An earlier start time, a different route and several other negotiated changes have kicked off a very public pissing match. Because of the change in route, the parade will now pass directly in front of Our Lady of Mount Carmel Church, on a SUNDAY, at NOON, in the Lakeview neighborhood. The church is worried about traffic problems?
Its parishioners will not have convenient valet parking? It's not as though OLMC is
a revered shrine, or that there aren't alternate Catholic churches within spitting distance in any direction, so it must be OLMC's weekly collections that is at risk?
Surely there could be an internal archdiocese auditing credit that would ease the cashflow crunch? Maybe the parish could erect skyboxes and premium viewing platforms for attendees? In years past, with a 2 pm parade start on Halsted Street, the church's parking was packed like sardines and used to generate income. Maybe it's that loss that is being lamented?

Chicagoans with their vague, candy-coated fears and loathings are frantically trying to keep up with 2012 scheduling challenges. A relatively mild winter so far has left the local media with time to fill. Instead of storm watches, field reports of road conditions, accidents and the annual "saving of the parking space with lawn furniture" dibsies olympics, they've filled the time with details on 2012 scheduling. By all reports, road construction is not the big worry this summer.

In fact, Chicago is emerging, once again, as an epicenter for the airing of grievance. Occupy Chicago is already here. Wobblies, Anarchists, Socialists, Communists and hundreds (thousands) of National SIGs have Chicago offices.
Groups are mobilizing for The G8 and NATO summits in May. You may want to either give this area a comfortably wide berth or make your plans to join in the festivities. It is shaping up to be quite the exercise in advanced citizenship. What could possibly go wrong?

To that, Mayor Rahm and his top-cop have upped their game too. Plans, contingency plans, emergency plans, response plans, intelligence, surveillance, free-speech rules and zones...

Call your travel agent. A landslide of Chicagoans already are. They've done the math.
Disorder will be preserved! Another perfect storm is gathering. Come to Chicago to be heard? herded?

From the distal reach of the 'L', it'll be a easy commute.